High net worth family firm Vardags has signed a joint venture collaboration with Dubai firm Trench & Associates in order to break into the valuable United Arab Emirates (UAE) market. The deal sees Vardags offer a full service for high net worth clients based in Dubai, including English matrimonial services, succession and estate planning, and […]
Baker Botts has announced the hire of Trowers & Hamlins’ United Arab Emirates (UAE) head Abdullah Mutawai and head of international disputes Lucas Pitts in a boost to its Dubai offering. Mutawi joins the US firm’s corporate team, while Pitts will be a member of the firm’s international litigation practice, both in Dubai. The hires […]
At least eight Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman’s partners in the US have quit to join Winston & Strawn’s corporate, finance and private equity practice, with a handful more expected to follow in London and the Middle East. The lateral partner hires come less than a week after Winston & Strawn poached Pillsbury structured products practice […]
DWF is launching in Dubai, the firm’s first office outside of the UK and Ireland. The office, which will initially house four lawyers, will be led by DWF non-marine insurance partner Chris Ryan. The firm has also recruited construction partner Steven Hunt, formerly of Al Tamimi & Co, from Holland & Knight. The lawyers in […]
Shearman & Sterling is gearing up to significantly expand its presence in the Middle East, with plans for new outposts in Dubai and Riyadh. The firm, which has had an office in Abu Dhabi since 1975, has been considering investing further in the region for a number of years. However, insider sources suggest that Shearman […]
DLA Piper’s Middle East and Kuwait managing partner Abdul Aziz Al-Yaqout has resigned to launch his own boutique firm in Kuwait. Al-Yaqout has teamed up with Carlyle Group MENA general counsel Bader El-Jeaan to launch the firm, Meysan Partners. Restructuring and M&A lawyer Al-Yaquout took up the regional managing partner role at DLA Piper in […]
Saudi Arabian firm the Law Office of Abdulaziz H. Fahad has converted into a professional service partnership, with the aim of ensuring future partner promotions and succession planning. The firm, which has in the past been affiliated with Western practices including Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld and DLA Piper, will now […]
How do you best access the Arab market? It’s a lucrative world out there, but you’ll need to understand the cultural nuances. The Lawyer’s guide to doing business in the Arab world provides key insight on the region, and includes research on the leading independent firms in the Middle East and North Africa. Al Tamimi’s […]
As it celebrates its silver anniversary, Middle Eastern giant Al Tamimi & Co is looking at Africa and Asia for its next stage of growth – with a bit of help from Linklaters. Back in 1989, United Arab Emirates (UAE) lawyer Essam Al Tamimi decided to set up a firm which would be very different […]
The IPO market might be starting to slow in London after a particularly active stint in 2014. But in other climes, it still seems to have plenty of momentum. Last week Latham & Watkins and Baker & McKenzie’s Saudi association firms advised on the largest-ever flotation in the Arab world – the £3.7bn listing of […]
Latham & Watkins and Baker & McKenzie’s association firms in Saudi Arabia have won key roles advising on the IPO of the country’s largest lender, the National Commercial Bank (NCB). The $6bn (£3.7bn) flotation is the largest-ever listing in the Arab world, and potentially the second largest globally in 2014 following Alibaba’s $25bn IPO in […]
Baker & McKenzie has boosted its presence in Saudi Arabia with a second office in the Kingdom, launching in Jeddah through affiliate Abdulaziz Al-Ajlan & Partners. Abdulaziz Al-Ajlan & Partners has appointed finance lawyer Julie Alexander to support and manage the development of the new office, the seventh for Baker & McKenzie in the region. […]